Electrical assembly



Oct. 23, 1956 v. R. HERTERICK ELECTRICAL ASSEMBLY 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 1, 1953 m m :m N R WT o Tm w N f T NN E C m Vv D Oct. 23, 1956 v. R. HERTERICK 2,763,251

ELECTRICAL ASSEMBLY Filed May 1, 1953 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 \NvENToR: VINCENT R. HERTERKLK,

WWW

AT TOR NEV- United States Patent 2,768,251 ELECTRICAL ASSEMBLY Vincent R. Herterick, Waltham, Mass., assignor, by mesne assignments, to United-Carr Fastener Corporation, Cambridge, Mass., a corporation of Delaware Application May I, 1953, Serial No. 352,407 1 Claim'. (Cl. 20011) This application is a continuation in part of my application filed January 15, 1952, Serial No. 266,550, entitled Electrical Assembly, now Patent No. 2,644,045, issued June 30, 1953.

This invention relates generally to electrical assemblies, and has particular reference to circuit continuing member such as an electrical switch or the like.

In certain types of electrical switches, where a great many different circuits are to be controlled, it is customary to provide a housing having one or more circuitcompleting rotors disposed therein which are operable from outside the housing, and a contact plate disposed opposite the rotors having a plurality of contact members disposed thereon for electrical contact with shorting members mounted on the rotors. Wires are commonly attached to the contacts on the plate and extend rearwardly therefrom to a rear opening in the housing. When the switch is required to complete a great many circuits in various combinations, as is the case, for example, in the master lighting switch in a military vehicle such as a truck or a tank, a great many wires are required to be assembled onto the plate, which necessitates a relatively large housing. Such an assembly also is relatively expensive, due to the cost of labor involved in assembling the wires thereon, and if the device is to carry large amounts of current, there is always the danger that the heat generated thereby will damage the insulation on the wiring and cause short circuits to develop between the wires, which are usually crowded closely together. Since the wires extending from the rear of the housing must be arranged in a predetermined manner to fit into a mating connector which has the connections to the various circuits disposed thereon in a predetermined arrangement, it is easily possible for errors to occur in wiring the switch.

The object of the invention is to provide an electrical switch assembly in which no internal wiring is required.

A further object of the invention is to provide an electrical switch in which the internal portions thereof are so designed that it is possible to assemble the switch only with the various circuit-completing members disposed in the proper relation to one another.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an electrical assembly having a plurality of electrical paths from one end of the assembly to the other so that the position of the paths relative to each other is changed in passing through the assembly, having a stacked series of insulating plates to support a plurality of rigid conductor bars, in which some plates are provided with elongated transverse recesses to receive transverse portions of said conductor bars.

In the drawing: Fig. 1 is a view in section of a switch Fig. 2 is a view in section taken on line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an exploded perspective view of the component parts of the connector stack; 7 I

Fig. 4 is a view in section taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 3

Fig. 5 is a View in section taken on line 5-5 of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 6 is a view in section taken on line 6-6 of Fig. 3.

Referring to the drawing, there is illustrated a switch assembly 10, which comprises generally a housing having a front portion 11 and a rear portion 12 with a rear opening 14, and circuit-completing means assembled in the housing which comprises a pair of contact rotors 16 and 18 which are operable from outside the housing by suitable levers 2t and 22.

The rotor 16 comprises an insulating support 24 having a plurality of contact members 26 assembled thereon. Certain of said contact members may be joined at the rear portion by shorting plates 28, so that said contact members may complete electrical circuits in a manner to appear hereinafter. A metallic support plate 30 is disposed on the rear of the support 24 and is provided with suitable peripheral notches 32 for engagement with a spring arm 34, to stop the rotation of the rotor in various predetermined positions. If a lock mechanism is desired on the rotor, the periphery may also be provided with suitable ratchet teeth 36 for engagement with a pawl 38. The pawl 33 may be operated by a lever 39 on the outside of the housing, and the pawl and teeth may be so arranged that the rotor 16 may not be operated until the lever 39 is moved to disengage the pawl. The rotor 18 is generally similar in construction to the rotor 16, with the exception that the contact members have a different arrangement to suit the requirements of the individual switch.

To conduct the electrical circuits from the rear opening 14 to the rotors, a circuit-continuing assembly 40 is provided in the housing adjacent the rotors, which comprises a series of stacked insulating support plates with a plurality of conductor bars assembled therewith. (See Fig. 3.)

In the illustrated embodiment, there is provided a front cover plate 42, and support plates 44, 48, and 52. The conductor bars are designated by letters A through N, and are preferably formed of relatively rigid material so as to be adapted for the assembly operation to be described hereinafter. A typical connector bar comprises a medial portion, with one or more front contact members disposed thereon in spaced relation which extend generally at right angles to the medial portion for electrical contact with the rotor contacts, and a rear connector member also disposed on the medial portion for extending toward the rear of the housing when assembled. For example, connector bar A comprises a medial portion A1, a front contact surface A3 disposed at one end thereof, and a rear connector A2 disposed at the other end and extending in the opposite direction. As a further example, conductor bar L comprises a medial portion Li, a re'arwardly extending connector L2, and three forwardly extending contacts L3, L4, and L5. The portions of the other bars have similar designations. In each case the medial portion of a conductor bar is indicated by the designating letter of the bar of which it is a part, followed by the number 1, such as A1, B1, C1, and so forth. In each case, the letter of the bar followed by the number 2 indicates a rearwardly extending connector,

3 such as A2, B2, C2, and so forth. With two exceptions, the letter of the bar followed by the number 3, 4, or 5 indicates a forwardly extending contact, such as A3, D4, and L5. The two exceptions are F3 and N3, which indicate a second rearwardly extending connector on the bars F and N respectively.

The support plates are provided with elongated recesses of various shapes, which conform generally to the shape of the medial portion of a particular conductor bar. For example, support 44 is provided with an elongated 'recess 44a to receive conductor bar A, an elongated recess 44b to receive conductor bar B, and so on. Each plate is necessarily provided with other openings, some of which, for purposes of simplifying the drawing, have not been numbered. The function of these other openings will become apparent hereinafter.

To assemble the stack, conductor bars I, K, L, M, and N are assembled into corresponding elongated rccesses 52 52k, 52L, 52m, and 52n respectively in support plate 52, with the connector members J2, K2, L2, M2, and N2 extending rearwardly through apertures 52 2, 52k2, 52L2, 52m2, and 52112 to protrude from the rear face of the support 52.

The support 48 is then superimposed onto the front face of the support 52. The support 48 is provided with suitably positioned apertures to permit any forwardly extending portions of the previously assembled conductor bars to pass therethrough, and retains the previously assembled conductor bars in position in their recesses.

Conductor bars E, F, G, H, and I are then assembled into elongated recesses 48e, 43f, 48g, 48h, and 481 so that the connector portions extending therefrom pass through suitably positioned apertures extending from the recesses to the rear face of the support 48, and extend rearwardly through suitably positioned apertures in the support 52 to protrude from the rear face thereof.

The support 44 and conductor bars A, B, C, and D are assembled in like manner. and the cover plate 42 is assembled onto the front face of the support 44. The cover plate 42 is provided with suitably positioned recesses to receive the forwardly extending contact portions A3, B3, C3, D3, E3, G3, G4, H3, I3, I4, J3, J4, K3, K4, L3, L4, L5, M3, and N4. The entire stack may then be fastened together with rivets or other suitable means.

After such assembly, the front connectors of the conductor bars extend into the openings in the front plate and terminate so as to be substantially flush with the surface thereof, to enable them to make electrical contact with appropriate contact members on the rotors 16 and 18. The rear connectors A2, B2, E2, F2, G2, H2, 12, 12, K2, L2, M2, and N2 protrude a substantial distance from the rear plate 52 and are so positioned in a single group thereon as to enter the rear opening 14 in the housing when the assembly 49 is assembled. (See Fig. 1.)

To provide rigidity to the ends of the rear connectors, an insulating member 55 may be provided in the rear opening 14, which supports and positions the rear connectors and also provides a watertight seal in the opening.

In the illustrated embodiment, the front connectors of the conductor bars are disposed in the cover plate 42 so as to form two separate groups of contacts, for contact with the rotors 16 and 18. However, the configuration of the conductor bars in the stack of supports permits the rear connectors to protrude rearwardly from the stack in a single group, for entering the rear opening of the housing for engagement with a suitable junction box or connector (not shown) with said rear connectors disposed in a predetermined desired relation to each other. This feature is particularly desirable where a switch embodying the features of the invention must be designed not only for use in new construction, but also to replace units already in service, where the switch must mate with a junction connector having electrical circuits connected thereto which it would be inconvenient or impossible to change.

In electrical circuits passing through the switch, it is usually desirable to provide a circuit breaker, and the switch of the invention is particularly adapted for permitting the circuit breaker to be assembled inside the switch housing. For example, the rear support 52 may be provided with a relatively large recess 56 in the rear face thereof, shaped to allow a circuit breaker 58 to seat therein. The circuit breaker is provided with a pair of contacts 60 and 62 on the rear side, and in the particular switch illustrated, connection is made to the circuit breaker by the rear connector portions F3 and C2 of conductor bars F and C, which are of a suitable length to be bent over the contacts 60 and 62 and secured thereto by soldering, which also retains the circuit breaker in place. In some cases it may be desirable to provide a resistor (not shown) in certain portions of the circuit, and connectors D2 and N3 are provided for this purpose.

It is, of course, obvious that since the medial portions of the conductor bars are designed to allow the various connections from the front plate to be transposed laterally from one position to another in passing through the assembly, the configuration of the medial portions in the support plates must be such as to avoid the other openings therein. It will also be noted that any particular conductor bar will fit properly into only one particular elongated recess of the supports, thereby greatly siniplifying the assembly operation. It is also impossible to assemble the switch with the support plates in the wrong order, since in such a case the correct number of openings in adjacent plates for the front contacts and rear connectors will not be provided.

Hence, it is impossible to assemble any portion of the switch improperly, and this feature provides a major advantage over prior types of switches which use flexible wires to make the connections from the rear of the switch to the contact plate.

The illustrated device shows a particular embodiment of the features of the invention; however, the teachings of the invention may be applied to other electrical devices, such as connectors, plugs, and the like. In such a case, where it is desired to rearrange the relative position of the circuits passing therethrough, or to combine various circuits in a predetermined manner, a stack of insulating support plates with conductor bars assembled therewith generally in the manner illustrated may be used, and the conductor bars may either terminate so as to be flush with each end of the stack for contact with rotors at each end, or may be provided with either male or female connectors at either end, depending on the application in which it is to be used.

Although the illustrated device is provided with a plurality of support plates, in switches in which the circuit arrangement is not so complicated, it may be possible to accomplish the circuit rearrangement in a single support.

In the illustrated embodiment, the recesses to receive the medial portions of the conductor bars are disposed on the front faces thereof. However, in some cases, the recesses may be disposed on the rear faces, or on both front and rear faces, depending on the most convenient arrangement for the particular circuit.

Since certain other obvious modifications may be made in the device without departing from the scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained herein be interpreted in an illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

I claim:

An electrical assembly, comprising a series of stacked support plates, a cover plate, and a group of conductor members assembled therewith to provide a series of electrical paths from the front end of the assembly to the rear end of the assembly such that the position of the paths in relation to each other is changed in passing through the assembly, said support plates each having a series of transversely extending elongated recesses disposed in the front face thereof, and apertures extending from predetermined points in the recesses to the rear face thereof, said conductor members having transverse portions disposed in said recesses, longitudinal portions extending rearwardly through said apertures and through suitably positioned apertures in any intervening support plates to protrude from the rear of the assembly, said cover plate being disposed over the front face of the front sup- 10 2 port plate, and having apertures disposed therein in a 6 predetermined position, certain of said conductor mem bers having portions extending forwardly through suitably spaced apertures in any intervening plates into the apertures in said cover plate.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,447,353

De Champs Oct. 31, 1950 2,612,577 Jacobi Sept. 30, 1952 Merrill Aug. 17, 1948 

